Udhayanidhi calls Vijay’s Assembly reply ‘memorised cinema script’

Tamil Nadu Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin on Monday, September 7, accused Chief Minister Joseph C Vijay of using "diversionary tactics" and alleged that he failed to answer questions raised by the DMK on the state's law and order situation.

Udhayanidhi made the remarks after the main opposition party staged a walkout from the Assembly, accusing the chief minister of diverting attention from questions on what it described as deteriorating law and order, including recent daylight killings.

Speaking to reporters, Udhayanidhi said he had raised 15 specific questions on law and order but alleged that Vijay did not address them in his 45-minute reply to the debate on the police department's functioning.

Instead, he accused the chief minister of referring to decades-old issues, including the Sarkaria Commission and the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA), and reading out pending Enforcement Directorate cases involving opposition leaders.

Udhayanidhi said the DMK decided to boycott the proceedings after Speaker JCD Prabhakar allegedly denied the party an opportunity to respond to what he called "baseless" corruption allegations made by Vijay.

He also levelled allegations of monopolisation of government mining contracts by people close to the chief minister.

"Vishnu Reddy, his brother-in-law Sujay Reddy, and their business partner Anil Reddy have now taken full control of all government-run mining operations. I am going to release the evidence for this one by one," Udhayanidhi alleged.

There was no immediate response from the individuals named by him.

Udhayanidhi also called Vijay a "dummy" and described his rise to power as an "accident". He alleged that the chief minister himself was facing an unresolved Income Tax case over alleged concealment of Rs 15 crore.

He further alleged that an Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) MLA was recently offered money and a Cabinet berth in return for political support.

The DMK leader also accused the Speaker of acting in a partisan manner and deliberately silencing the opposition benches.

Meanwhile, DMK Organisation Secretary R S Bharathi, speaking to PTI Videos, sought to clarify Vijay's reference to the Sarkaria Commission.

"The original complaint was given by MGR (AIADMK founder M G Ramachandran) in 1972. The commission was constituted in 1976, during the period of Emergency. (Then Prime Minister) Indira Gandhi, who appointed the commission, had even apologised before the people of Tamil Nadu and claimed that it all happened without her knowledge. Therefore, it's a dead snake. Now, Vijay is trying to beat this dead snake. That's all," Bharathi said.

DMK MP Kanimozhi also hit out at Vijay's Assembly address, accusing the TVK leader of relying on "WhatsApp factory lies" to target the DMK.

In a post on X, she said the Assembly should have been debating pressing issues such as law and order and women's safety but had instead been reduced to a "circus tent".

Kanimozhi alleged that Vijay read from a prepared script during the debate on police grants and avoided answering direct questions. She also criticised what she described as his lack of historical understanding of the Justice Party and Dravidian movement's contributions.

"Not everything loud is true," she said.